Dealing with the challenges of adoption

Most people don’t realize how invasive and grueling adoption can be.

If you think about it, anyone is "allowed" to get pregnant—this is even true for people who would be completely unable or even unwilling to care for a baby properly.

And yet when you make the decision to try to adopt a child, you must:

Have your fingerprints taken

Receive a complete physical examination

Invite a social worker into your home to study your family

Sell yourself and your spouse to potential birth parents

The process can take years and can be a time of keeping feelings bottled up inside. Many people avoid telling their friends and family because they don't want to deal with the "usual questions."

Having a place to let your feelings out is of the utmost importance when trying to adopt a child. Learning to process your feelings isn't easy at times like these, but it can be done with the guidance of a therapist who’s experienced adoption first-hand.

Managing adoption anxiety

The adoption process can be a time of great anxiety.

And if you're like many others, you could be going through it all while still trying to get pregnant or having recently struggled with infertility.

And just like with infertility, when you're trying to adopt a child it can seem like all of your friends and family are easily conceiving children - leaving you alone with the difficulties of the process, including the high fees and false starts that can easily make you feel like a victim.

Managing your emotions can make the adoption process easier on you and your family. Get the benefits of my experience with adoption as well as the countless people I've helped through its challenges.

Adoption is more of a beginning than an end

Even successful adoption comes with complications.

The process of raising an adopted child can still be a major challenge. This can be compounded by not knowing what types of challenges or special needs may arise with adoptive children—as so often does happen.

Bringing an additional family member into the household is something that requires a tremendous amount of emotional preparation. This is especially true when you consider that adopted children can experience issues of their own.

Understanding the challenges ahead of time and planning for them will make all the difference in making your adoption as successful as possible.